Terence Newman has been singled out as the ringleader of the Minnesota Vikings players who decided to ignore their head coach in Week 16, but the veteran cornerback insists the reports of a so-called mutiny have been inaccurate.
In a text message to ESPN’s Josina Anderson on Monday, Newman said there were never any issues between Vikings players and coaches.
“There were and are no issues with anything between player and coach,” he wrote. “The whole thing was blown out of proportion.”
Vikings coach Mike Zimmer started the controversy himself when he said Xavier Rhodes was supposed to be covering Green Bay Packers wide receiver Jordy Nelson the entire game, not just in the second half. Nelson caught nine passes for 154 yards and two touchdowns in his team’s 38-25 win. Rhodes essentially told reporters that Minnesota’s secondary got together and blatantly defied Zimmer’s game plan.
The latest report about the bizarre situation does not paint Newman in the best light, so you can understand why he wants to throw cold water on it. Regardless of what he says, it’s clear that the Vikings ignored their coach in some capacity and got burned because of it.
